VOTE! Dang It!

My Friends,

In an earlier reply to Maureen, I whined and whined about my health woes. As much as I whine and whine, I'm so grateful that I have a job that provides insurance.  There's not a single doctor's visit or pill popped in my mouth that doesn't remind me that Marilyn and Margo struggle without insurance and the medical care they need.  I'm sure there are others on this board that are uninsured as there are over 47 million uninsured Americans.  In August alone, there were 1,772 mass layoffs in this country.  Unemployment and underemployment are up.  Gas is astronomical and food staples are just as bad. 

Please, please, please vote this year.  Study the issues, do your research and vote for who you think is going to get us out of this mess.  Vote for Margo, vote for Marilyn, vote for all of us who are struggling to feed our kids and put gas in our cars to get to work. 

Lots of Love,
Connie

I'm voting. I can't wait until November. I feel exactly the way that you do.

HERE, HERE! And help get other folks to the booth! I met a young man at a Best Buy recently - we got to talking and he got such a kick out of me, he brought his beautiful young girlfriend over to meet me (they both worked there together) - a beautiful young African American couple. She was very concerned about what's going on and had registered very early on to vote - but she couldn't get him to register, not kicking or screaming, not enticing him with ... well, with anything! He is just that apathetic. I wish I could tell you I worked my MoJo and he's all fired up and registered - but he basically stands on his assertion that he's just one person with one voice so his vote won't matter a hill of beans. These are the folks we need to get to - all of our voices matter! At the end of our conversation, Joe said to me - "I might register. I think of having kids some day and they would ask me about maybe voting for Barak Obama and that would be cool." And I said, "Joe, think of it this way. If you don't vote and Obama is elected as our first ever black president - and those kids you have some day say 'Dad, tell us about when Obama became president, what was it like to vote for the first black president?" I said, "How will it feel, Joe, to tell them 'I didn't vote for him.'" Ok, folks - so you know my leanings - and that's ok, and for those of you leaning the other way - that's ok too! The point is this really is the most serious moment in the history of our country! And we have got to change the course - and together we can do that. Thanks for this Connie! Love you guys. M.

I'm so dumb! That's supposed to be HEAR, HEAR! As in "hear what this very wise, very wonderful woman has to say!" Not "HERE, HERE!" - What a gallupa I am!

Yes, it is important to vote, even though in the last election, the person America voted for did not serve as president....this is how I can understand why people don't want to vote.  I wonder how our lives would be right now if Gore had actually taken office. 

As far as this election is concerned, there is one candidate I believe (in theory) but I am still having trouble making my decision.  It's very difficult.

Politically yours,
Joanie

this is  a VERY hard decision for me. Most of my views are supported by Obama... except for one. major. one. which is partial birth abortion. if anyone has looked this up on how they DO this procedure it is the most horrifying thing I have ever seen and i cried and cried...  there is a ban in place stopping it...placed in 2003. that recent! I just dont understand the medical community. is there no other way to do it humanely???? its absolutely barbaric how they do this with scissors and a suction.  and thats the darned truth!!!!   i'm just HORRIFIED and afraid if he gets in the ban will be lifted and i would be part of that. Can I conciously be a part of that ban being lifted????YET i am soooo for all the other things...universal health care etc... etc.. etc... many other things as well... except for that one major thing. My husband tells me... but its people like you that will stop that ban from being lifted.  I say... yeah. Maybe. why can't obama be in support of the partial birth ban and but not for abortion up to a certain term?? Why does it have to be all or nothing. If the baby is hanging out.... its born... if the little baby is holding onto your finger with its little hand then its ALIVE. i'm sorrry i know its a big full can of worms i'm opening... but 'sigh' i just cried and cried. to me partial birth is murder. i just cannot see how anyone with a heart can justify killing a baby thats alive and fighitng to live using scissors!!!!! gives me the shivers... and this Maureen... when you say there is so much evil and horrifying things in this world... this is one of them. This is definitely a hard decision for me. big time. I fought looking up partial birth abortions because I was afraid of what i would find. What i read was more horrifying than I had ever thought!!!  why can't they do it another way??? how can they do it period?? 'sigh' sorry. but this just hurts. and makes me not want to vote period. The only thing I can see is if we have  republican majority and a democratic president. Perhaps with a republican majority the PBA ban wouldn't be put up to be lifted.  maybe??? 

ill probably be kicked off and have everyone mad at me for this one!!!!! 

You have to vote your conscious, dear one. Just vote! And what I know about the man - his sense of decency, nothing I know of him tells me he's FOR partial birth abortion (and I certainly am not). I'll have to look into that. So much of what people THINK they know about him, based on rumors and lies, are simply that...rumors and lies. But on this issue, sweetie, I confess I don't know the facts, so I have to research. I believe him to be a decent-minded, fair-minded, caring individual - a politician nonetheless. I believe him to be much the far less of these two evils. There is supposed to be a couple of sights that really sort out the fact from fiction - the truths from the lies - on both candidates. Let me see if I can find those sights. In terms of the fear factor?   Having Sarah Palin anywhere NEAR the White House is about as frightening as it gets for me...M.

I'm rolling in Dumbville today - should read: "There ARE supposed to be a couple of SITES..."

Actually its not a rumor I'm going on. I was listening to him speak and straight from his mouth he stated that he would not stand against partial birth abortions because america would think that he wanted to take away womens rights and that he was against abortion that it was too fine of a line... yatta yatta. I have to say I was sorely disspointed in him for not standing his ground and saying no im not for it i think its a disgrace yet, im not against abortion. I don't know. 'sigh' that is what made me look into what PBA really was all about and I was horrified. :-(  I'm nto so much against Palin though, yet I find her very vague on issues. Yet I like how she runs Alaska. My cousin lives there. Illinois happens to be the most in dept in pension in the entire nation 42 billion! and also they have the highest tax rate in the nation of 10.25%!!!  thats a bit freaky, but not to say that its Obama's fault... i mean there are administrations set in place and they have to be held responsible, yet it doesn't make the senator of illinois look very good in that sense... especially with the pension debt they are in. yet... 'sigh' there are so many YETS... and im not saying im for McCain... just looking at all the issues.  its a hard one for me. its true, we have to find the facts and dig. But the partial birth came right from his mouth... not that he said he'd lift the ban, but if he stated hes not against PBA that just freaked me the heck out. and he had no qualms about it. freaks me out.

Yes, I like Obama in theory...however, I have a problem with the fact that he has no clear cut solutions that are viable.  He means well, and I support a lot of things he says, but I have my doubts he can get it done.  And as for Sarah Palin.....there is so much bad press, I am starting to feel sorry for her.  I don't think she is qualified to be president, however, I do feel she is qualified to be vice president.  After all, what exactly does the vice president do??  Unlike many others, I don't believe everything I read about her.  As Reenie says, they are politicians.  That being said, there is not much honesty in the picture.  I realize Obama is ahead in the polls...he certainly can talk the talk...I have a few doubts whether he can walk the walk....not that Mc Cain can fix anything either. 

So, as you can see, my dear friends, I have no clue as to what I am going to do in November. 

Confusingly yours,
Joanie